Adjustment structure for concaves of gyratory crushers



H. H. RUMPEL Feb. 2, 1954 ADJUSTMENT STRUCTURE FOR CONCAVES 0F GYRATORY CRUSHERS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 2, 1952 INVENTOR.

,4 T'TORNE/S.

Feb. 2, 1954 H. H. VRUMPEL 2,668,015

ADJUSTMENT STRUgJTURE FOR CONCAVES 0F GYRATORY CRUSHERS Filed May 2, 1952 INVENTOR. i Q g $a8-e/M& M

A TTORA/E/S.

2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Feb. 2, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ADJUSTMENT STRUCTURE FOR CONCAVES' OF GYRATORY ORUSHERS Harvey H. Rumpel, Whitefish Bay, Wis., assignor to Smith Engineering Works, Milwaukee, Wis., a corporation of Wisconsin Application May 2, 1952, Serial No. 285,724

4 Claims. (01. 241207) The present invention relates in general to improvements in gyratory crushers for rock, ore

and similar substances, and relates more par tively small anduniform size, it is. extremely. desirable for the operator to beable to rapidly adjust the crushing members relative to each other and to positively maintain them in relatively adjusted position, in order'to compensate for wear and to vary the size of the final product at will. Since the crushing head of this type of crusher is normally gyrating while the crushing concave is normally fixed, it'is easier to effect relative adjustment of these coacting, crushing members by moving the concave toward or away from the head as with the aid of screw threads interposed between the concave memberand the crusher frame. After each such adjustment has been effected, it is also necessary to positively hold the concave in adjusted position in order to insure the production of uniform final product, and such holding of the concave member has heretofore been universally accomplished by wedging the coacting adjusting threads against each other with the aid of a number of individually manipulable jack screws coacting either di- 3 rectly with one of the threaded parts or with segmental wedges cooperating with the adjusting threads. This mode of effecting concave adjustment is not only tedious, complicated and difficult to accomplish due to the use of numerous indi vidually operable jack screws, but it is also'impossible to effectively seal the adjustingthreads and the screw threads of the jacks from exposure 1 to the dusty surroundings in which these crushers normally operate, and none of the prior adjusting mechanisms have been properly sealed to so seal and protect them. 7 I

It is therefore an important object of the present invention to provide improved means for notonly effecting relative-adjustment of the con- 2 cave and head of a gyratory crusher, but for also holding these parts in various positions of adjustment and for sealing the adjusting mechanism against all possible ingress of foreign matter.

Another important object of my invention is to provide improved adjusting and sealing mechanism for the crushing members of a recrusher, wherein adjustments may be quickly and accurately effected without exposing the adjusting threads to dust and grit and with minimum loss of time.

A further important object of this invention is to provide an improved screw thread adjustment for the concave crushing member or bowl of a gyratory crusher, wherein only one element 1 need be manipulated in order to effect accurate adjustment and to insure firm subsequent clamping of the adjusted element.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a simple, durable, and reliable adjusting device applicable to various types of gyratory fine crushers, at moderate cost and so as to insure product of any de-' production of uniform final sired size. 7

These and other more specific objects'and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description from which it will be apparent that the gist of my invention is the provision of a constantly and thoroughly sealed and protected and easily manipulable adjusting and holding mechanism for the concave crushing member or bowl of a gyratory crusher. V

A clear conception of the features constituting the present improvement, and of the construction and operation of the improved adjusting and I sealing devices as applied to several types of gyratory crushers, may be had by referring to the drawings accompanying and forming a part of this specification and wherein like reference characters designate the same or similar the various views. V

Fig. 1 is a part sectional side elevation of one kind of commercial gyratory crusher having one type. of the improved concave crushing member adjusting and applied thereto, the section having been taken vertically and centrally through the crushing chamber;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary radial section similar to that of Fig. 1, but showing the details of construction of the adjusting and sealing mechanism more clearly;

parts in sealing mechanism through the modified concave bowl adjusting: and

sealing mechanism of Fig. showing a' flexible tubular external seal; and.

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary likewiseienlarged verti--- cal radial section through a further modified con:- cave bowl adjusting and sealing mechanismlsoma I what similar to that of Figs. 4 and 5 but having a telescopic external seal applied to the adjusting device.

While the inventionhas only been illustrated and. described as being advantageously applicable totwo kinds oftypicaLgyratory crushers, it-i's-not the-.intentionzto: unnecessarily limit the use of the improvement to these specific crushers; and

it is. also. contemplated that-the descriptive terms used herein be given. the broadest possible interpretation consistentwith the disclosure.

- Referring'especially toFigs, 1, 2 and 3 of the drawings, the highspeed gyratory crusher showntherein, comprises in. general, a durable mainframe 8 having a central hub ii and an annular outer: wall l9: spaced: from but rigidly secured to the hub; an upright. cylindrical column H fi'xedly mounted within the frame hub 9; an eccemzric sleeve 12 having a central bore journalled for rotation about the fixed column I l and resting upon athrust bearing i3 atthe upper end of the hub 9; an inner crushing member or. head 14 freely rotatable about. and gyratable by the external eccentric surface of the sleeve l2v and resting upon afloating thrust bearing l5 at the upper extremity of the column H, the head M being provided with afrusto-conical crushing mantle it; anormally fixed annular outer crushing member or concave ll surrounding the head is and having therein a tapered crushing liner is cooperating with the mantle it to form. an annular downwardly extending and outwardly flaring. crushing chamber l9; a coarse material supply hopper. 28 carried by the concave ii in open communication with the upper inlet end of the chamber is; an annular inner apron 2i suspended from the bottom of the concave ll around the lower outlet end of the chamber IS; a concave support or ring 22 having an annular lower flange 23 tiltably mounted upon a ridge 24 formed integral with the upper end of the frame wall it! and being normally held in firm contact with the ridge 24 by a series of heavy springs 25; and a power shaft 26 journalledin a tubular casing 2T mounted in the lower portion of the frame 8 and having a driving pulley 28 at one end thereof While its opposite end is provided with a bevel pinion29 meshing with a bevel gear 39 rigidly associated with the lower end of the eccentric sleeve i2.

All of. the foregoing crusher structure is relatively well known, and since the opposed crushing surfaces of the head mantle l5 and bowl or concave liner 18 are obviously subjected to considerable wear, these elements are readily removable from their carrying element for renewal; and since these crushing surfaces also gauge the size of the final product they must be capable of convenient relative adjustment either dueto exces' 4 sive wear or in order to vary the desired size of the crushed material. In the crusher of Figs. 1, 2 and 3, such adjustment is made possible by providing external screw threads 32 on the pe riphery of the concave member H and coacting with internal screw threads 33 formed within the supporting ring 22, and by also providing an adjusting outer apron or collar 34 surrounding and cooperating with a clamping ring nut 35 having internal screw threads coacting with the threads 32 of the concave and also having a plane lower face 36- cooperable with the extreme upper fiat end surface of the ring 22. The adjusting collar 34 preferably has several internal parallel recesses 3T formed". therein while the ring nut 35 is: provided withequally spaced integral external peripheral. projections or keys 38 which are slidably engageable with the adjacent recesses 3i, and the upper end of the collar 34 is also provided with a series of equally spaced radial openings 39 adaptedior the reception of a lever or turning bar 40 and with an opening for receiving one or more readily removable pins 41. Th pins 4| are cooperable with any one or more of a series of spaced holes 42 formed in th top of the concave member I! while and after adjustment of the concave E7 is being or has been efiected and during normal operation of the crusher.

Since these crushers are usually subjected both internally and externally to dusty and gritty surroundings, it is important that the adjusting screw threads 32, 33 and the lock nut 35 be thoroughly concealed and protected against foreign substances, at all times. In the crusher of Figs. 1, 2 and 3, such concealment and protection is afforded by providing a resilient sealing ring 44 between the concave supporting ring 22 and the concave apron 2| on the inner side of the adjusting threads, and by providing another resilient sealing ring 45 between the adjusting collar 34 and the supporting ring 22 on the outside of these threads. The rings 44, 45 are preferably formed of felt, and the inner sealing ring 4 3" is confined within an annulargroove formed in the concave support 22 and slidably'cooperates with the outer cylindrical surface'of the apron '21 to constantly seal the adjusting threads against entry of foreign matter from the crushing chamberiS, while the outer sealing ring 45 is confined within an annular groove formed in the adjusting collar 34 and slidably cooperates with the outer cylindrical surface of the concave support 22.' to likewise constantly seal the screw threads against entry of foreign substancesfrom the ambient atmosphere.

These sealing rings 54,- 45 also" maintain the clamping'nut 38 and the guide recesses 37 and keys 38 constantly confined and protected.

During normal operation of the crusher illustrated in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, power maybeapplied' from any suitable source to the pulley28 and shaft 25, thereby transmitting rotary motion through. the pinion 2-9 and gear. 31) to the eccentric sleeve 12 and causingthe latter to revolve aboutthe fixed column I l and upon the lower thrust bearing. 13 and to'thereby gyrate the inner crushing. memberor. head is relative to the outer crushing member or concave. I! while permitting free rotation of the head l4 and its mantle l6 about the eccentric and" upon the upper thrust bearing [5. The material to be crushed may then be deposited within the hopper 20 from which it gravitates into the crushing zone or chamber l9, and as this material advances downwardly through the chamber 19 it is gradually crushed between.- the head mantle [B and- 5. concave liner l8 and is eventually delivered through the annular outlet opening at the lower end of the crushing zone and falls through the space between the frame hub 9 and wall l0. If for any reason uncrushable material is admitted to the crushing zone or chamber l9, the springs 25 will immediately permit the concave l1 and its support 22 to tilt and to thereby allow the obstructing material to pass through the crusher without danger of breaking overstressed parts, but the concave member I! normally assumes a fixed position unless some adjustment thereof becomes necessary.

If such adjustment in fact becomes desirable, either due to excessive wear on the crushing surfaces of the mantle l6 and liner 8 or in order to vary the size of the final product, the retainer pins 4| must first be withdrawn so as to release the collar 34 whereupon the latter may be rotated slightly with the aid of a bar or bars 40 applied to one or more of the socket openings 39, sumcient to release the annular lock nut 35. When the nut 35 has been thus released, the pins 3| should be reapplied to the holes 42 of the concave I7 and the latter may thereafter be rotated in either direction with the bars 40 so as to simultaneously move the crushing surface of the liner l8 and the nut 35 up or down depending upon the type of adjustment desired. After the concave I! has been thus properly adjusted, the pins 4| should again be removed and the collar 34 should be rotated in the reverse direction to drive the ring nut 35 back into locking engagement at the surface 36 and to thereby clamp the screw threads 32, 33 to each other, and with the parts thus firmly clamped together the pins 4! may be restored to maintain the elements in the newly adjusted position until subsequent adjustment thereof becomes desirable. During such functioning of the adjusting mechanism, sealing rings 44, 45 will function to retain the screw threads 32, 33 and the lock nut 35 thoroughly concealed and protected the same as when the crusher is operating normally.

Referring particularly to Figs. 4, and 6 of the drawings, the high speed gyratory crusher illustrated therein, comprises in general, a sturdy main frame 48 having a centrally bored upright central hub 49 and an annular outer wall 50 spaced from but rigidly secured to the hub; an eccentric sleeve 5| having an outer cylindrical surface journalled for rotation within the bore of the hub 49 and being suspended from a suitable thrust bearing while also being provided with an eccentric bore 52; an inner crushing member or head 53 having a depending central shaft 55 rigidly attached thereto and journalled for free rotation within the eccentric bore 52, the head being supported by the sleeve 5| and provided with a spherical zone shaped crushing mantle 55; a normally fixed annular outer crushing member or concave 56 surrounding the head 53 and having therein a tapered crushing liner 5l cooperating with the mantle 55 to form an annular downwardly extending and outwardly flaring crushing chamber 58; a coarse material supply hopper 59 carried by the concave 56 in open communication with the upper inlet end of the chamber 58 and cooperating with a gymtory plate 60 mounted upon the head 53 to feed raw material into the crusher; a concave support or ring 6| having an annular ridge 62 at its upper end cooperable with a tiltable peripheral flange 63 formed integral with the concave 56, the flange 63 and ridge 62 normally being held in contact with each other by a series of springs 64 interposed between the flange and an annular reaction plate 65 which is attached to the supporting ring 6| by tie bolts 66; and

a power shaft 61 journalled in a tubular casing 68 mounted in the frame 48 and having a driving pulley 69 at one end thereof while its opposite end is provided with a bevel pinion l9 meshing with a bevel gear rigidly secured to the lower end of the eccentric sleeve 5|.

All of the foregoing structure of this modified type of crusher is also well known, and since the opposed crushing surfaces of the head mantle 55 and-concave liner 5'! of this machine are also subject to considerable wear, these elements are made readily removable from their supporting parts for renewal; and because these crushing surfaces also determine the size of the final product they must also be capable of ready relative adjustment both in order to compensate for excessive wear and to vary the desired size of the crushed material. of Figs. 4, 5 and 6, such adjustment is made possible by providing external screw threads 12 on the stationary annular frame wall 50 and which coact with internal screw threads 13 formed within the supporting ring 6|, and by also pro' viding an annular series of teeth H on the exterior of the ring 6| with which a pawl l5 carried by a lever 16 is releasably cooperable, see Fig. 4. A ring nut 71 having thereon an external annular series of similar teeth M, also has internal screw threads coacting with the external threads 12 of the frame wall 50, and is additionally provided with plane upper surfaces 18 adapted to contact the lower flat end faces of the ring 6|. A second releasable pawl 19 such as shown in Fig. 5, and which is adapted to coact only with the teeth 14' of the ring nut 17 and is operable by means of another lever 80, may be provided in order to lock and to release the nut alone, but this pawl does not engage the teeth 74 of the frame wall 50.

The modified crusher of Figs. 4, 5 and 6 is also subject to dusty and gritty surroundings during normal use, and the adjusting screw threads 12, I3 and the lock nut 1! thereof should therefore also be thoroughly concealed and protected against foreign substances, at all times. In both Figs. 5 and 6, such concealment and protection is afforded at the inner ends of the threads by providing an annular depending rigid apron 82 on the concave support 6| adjacent to the outlet from the crushing chamber 58, and which is slidably cooperable with a resilient felt sealing ring 83 confined within an annular groove formed within the frame wall 50. The screw threads l2, l3 and lock nut H are thus constantly sealed against entry of foreign matter from within the crusher, by the ring 83 regardless of the position of the concave 56 relative to the head 53.

In the assemblage of Fig. 5, the outer ends of the screw threads l2, 33 are constantly sealed from the ambient atmosphere with the aid of a flexible sealing tube 84 the upper end of which is clamped to a metal ring 85 having angular transverse cross-section by means of an annular clamp 86, and the lower end of which is clamped to an external flange 8! on the frame wall 56 by means of an annular strap 88. The outwardly extending flange of the ring 85 is confined in sealing coaction with the nut 11 by a plate 89 so as to permit rotation of this lock nut relative to the non-rotary sealing tube 84.

The tube 84 may be formed of any suitable flex- In the modified crusher iblematerialsuch as plasticor rubber composition which will permit it to collapse slightly and to expand as the nut if! is moved downor up relative to the frame wall Bil, while constantly maintaining a sealfor concealing the threads l2, 73 from the ambient atmosphere.

In the modified assemblage of Fig. 6, the outer ends of the screw threads l2, '53 are likewise constantly sealed from theambientatmosphere by means of a telescopic tube comprising an upper annular outer apron or section 90, a lower annular section 9|, and an intermediate section 92 which is slidably but sealingly cooperable with the adjacent ends of the sections 96, 9|. The upper extremity of the tube section at has an integral outwardly projecting flange 93 formed thereon and which is clamped to the ring nut ll by a plate 94, while the lower extremity of the tube section 9! may be clamped to a flange 81 on the frame wall 59 by cap screws 95. lhe tube sections 99, 9|, 92 may be formed of sheet metal or the like, and the medial section 92 constitutes a sealing ring or annular sliding seal between the apron section 90 and the frame section 91 which will permit the nut ll to rotate and to move up or down relative to the frame wall 55 without destroying the sealing eifect.

During normal operation of the modified crusher illustrated in Figs. a, and 6, power is applied from any desired. source to the pulley 59 and shaft 61, thus transmitting rotary motion to the eccentric sleeve 5| through the pinion it and gear H and causing the eccentric to revolve within the bore of the frame hub 49 and to thereby gyrate the inner crushing member or head 53 relative to the outer crushing member or concave 56 while permitting free rotation of the head 53, mantle 5,5, and head shaft 54 about the central axis of the latter and relative to the eccentric sleeve Si. The material which is to be crushed may then be deposited within the hopper 59 and upon the gyrating feed plate 6t from which it drops by gravity into the upper inlet end of the crushing chamber 59. As the admitted material advances downwardly through the crushingzone between the head mantle 55 and the concave liner 5?, it is gradually reduced and is eventually delivered from the lower outlet endof the chamber 59 and from the crusher through the annular space between the frame hub 49 and outer wall 53. If uncrushable material is admitted to the crushing chamber 59 while the crusher is operating, the springs it promptly function to permit the concave 56 to tilt upon its supporting ring (5! and to thus al-- low the abnormal material to pass through the crushing zone without damaging crusher parts, but the concave member 55 is normally stationary and does not move relative to the frame 48 unless adjustment thereof relative to the head member 53 becomes necessary.

When such adjustment is necessary, either because of excessive wear on the crushing surfaces of the mantle 55 and lever 5? or in order to vary the size of the final product, the ring nut 11 must first be released from looking position, and this may be accomplished by turning it slightly so as to break the clamping contact at the plane surfaces 18. The ring nut ll may be thus retracted easily by utilizing the auxiliary pawl 19 and lever 80 shown in Fig. 5, while the main pawl I5 of Fig. 4 has been disengaged from the teeth H, T4';-ancl after the nut T! has been released, the pawl 15 may be applied to both sets of teeth 14. 14';and;theauxiliary pawl 19 should be retracted from the teeth 14?. By subsequently manipulating the main lever 76, both the concave support ill and the ring nut 11 may be simultaneously rotated so as to move these elements up or down and to thereby vary the position of the concave liner 56 relative to the head mantle 55. When proper adjustment has been attained, the main pawl 35 may again be retracted, and the auxiliary pawl it may be utilized to again drive the nut 1'! into looking or clamping coaction with the supporting ring %l at the plane surfaces 18, whereupon the crusher is restored to normal operating condition. During the time such adjustment is being effected, the ealing ring 83 and the outer tubular seals function to maintain the screw threads '82, f3 constantly concealed and protected precisely as when the crusher is operating normally. In the embodiment of Fig. 5, the fiexible tube 84! will collapse or stretch slightly while adjustment of the concave 56 is being effected but the opposite ends of this tube 8d will always remain sealed; whereas in the embodiment of Fig. 6 the telescoping rigid tube sections 95, 9|, 92 will move axially relative to each other while concave adjustment is being effected but the upper and lower ends of all of these sections will always remain sealed.

From the foregoing detailed description it will be apparent that the present invention provides simple but effective means for adjusting and holding the concave member of a gyratory crusher, with the aid of coacting screw threads and a single loci: nut, and for maintaining the adjusting threads thoroughly sealed against ingrass of foreign matter at all times. The improved adjusting mechanisms may be conveniently manipulated to effect uniform clamping of the extensive screw threads all around the large crusher frames, and may be manufactured at moderate cost for use with variou types of gyratory crushers. The use of the pins ll as in Figs. 2 and 3 and of the auxiliary pawl 19 as in Fig. 5, for eifecting release andre-loclring of the thread clamping ring nut, is not essential and any other suitable means for effecting such release and locking movement of the nut may be utilized. However, in both cases the ring nut may be moved up or down simultaneously with the concave while adjustments of the latter are being made; and in both embodiments of the invention illustrated, the screw threads are constantly sealed from exposure to both the interior of the crusher and the ambient atmosphere.

It should be understood that it is not desired to limit this invention to the exact details of construction or to the precise mode of operation of the concave adjusting and sealing mechanisms herein shown and described, for various modifications within the scope of the appended claims may occur to persons skilled in the art.

I claim:

1. In a gyratoi'y crusher, a frame, a crushing head-mounted for gyration within said frame a crushing concave carried by said frame and cooperating with said head to form an annular intervening crushing chamber, an inner annular apron carried by and depending from said concave around the outlet of said chamber, said frame and said concave having coacting external andinternal screw threads therebetween for effecting adjustment of said concave relative to said head to vary the size of the crushed product delivered from said chamber, a ring nut movable along said external screw threads to clamp said concave in various positions of adjustment, an

9 outer annular apron rotatable with said nut while the latter is being advanced along the external threads, a sealing ring mounted upon said frame and coacting with said inner apron to constantly seal said screw threads from exposure to said chamber, and another sealing ring interposed between said outer apron and said frame externally of said screw threads.

2. In a gyratory crusher, a frame, a crushing head mounted for gyration within said frame, a crushing concave having a support carried by said frame and cooperating with said head to form an annular intervening crushing chamber, an inner annular apron carried by and depending from said concave around the outlet of said chamber, said support and said concave having coacting external and internal screw threads therebetween for effecting adjustment of said concave relative to said head to vary the size of the crushed product delivered from said chamber, a ring nut movable along said external screw threads and being engageable with said support to clamp said concave in various positions of adjustment, an outer annular apron rotatable with said nut while the latter is being advanced along the external threads, an annular internal seal interposed between said inner apron and said support, and an annular external seal interposed between said outer apron and said concave.

3. In a gyratory crusher, a frame, a crushing head mounted for gyration within said frame, a

crushing concave having a support carried by said frame and cooperating with said head to form an annular intervening crushing chamber, an inner annular apron carried by said support and surrounding the outlet of said chamber, said frame and said support having coacting external and internal screw threads for efiecting adjustment of said concave relative to said head to vary the size of the crushed product delivered from said chamber, a ring nut movable along said external screw threads and being engageable with said support to clamp said concave in various positions of adjustment, an outer annular apron rotatable with said nut while the latter is being advanced along the external threads, a sealing ring mounted upon said frame and coacting with said inner apron, and an annular seal interposed between said outer apron and said frame.

4. In a gyratory crusher, a frame, a crushing head mounted for gyration within said frame, a crushing concave carried by said frame and cooperating with said head to form an annular intervening crushing chamber, an inner annular apron carried by and depending from said concave around the outlet of said chamber, said frame and said concave having coacting external and internal screw thread respectively therebetween for effecting adjustment of the concave relative to said head to vary the size of the crushed product delivered from said chamber, a ring nut movable along said external screw threads and being cooperable with said internal screw threads to clamp said concave in various positions of adjustment, an outer annular apron movable with said nut while the latter is being advanced along said external screw threads, a sealing ring interposed between said inner apron and said frame to constantly seal said screw threads from exposure to said chamber, and an annular external seal interposed between said outer apron and said frame to constantly seal said screw thread from exposure to the ambient atmosphere.

HARVEY H. RUMPEL.

References Cited in the file 01' this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,953,472 Fahrenwald Apr. 3, 1934 2,438,049 Gruender Mar. 16, 1948 

